Serbia's ex-minister: Probe into Telekom-Telenor agreement is a must

"If it is true, and I see that Telecom hasn't denied it, there is only one thing in the regulated country that must be done, and the Commission for Protection of Competition, together with the police, must start an investigation into both Telecom and Telenor, seal computers, close offices, request delivery of all emails and communications on that topic," Djelic said.

He added that what already existed was enough for the Commission to conduct that ex officio."

According to Djelic, an extensive investigation was needed because "the goal of the agreement was to eliminate a competitor through an agreement between other competitors with a significant share in the market."

"It is unprecedented. Such communication is unbelievable..," he added, referring to a part of the document N1 had access to which said the aim was to reduce SBB's market share to under 30 percent, thus disabling the company from functioning.

Djelic said the question was whether Telecom was managed economically and rationally. As a state company, it used citizens' money, why, he added, it was crucial to check the agreement.

But, he warned: "The Commission and the public should also look at the deal from the media point of view. Serbia needs to show it respects market rules and that there is some media freedom." He recalled some European reports, such as the European Commission's, which rated Serbia very low.

"Without free media, there is no democracy, and Serbia cannot qualify as a democratic country," Djelic warned.

Asked what would happen in France in such a case, Djelic, who now lives in Paris, said there would be no other outcome but an investigation.

"If the investigation finds that it is true, some sanctions would be imposed on the companies which take part. Even criminal charges are not excluded for those who participated," Djelic said.

"It seemed Telecom intended to give Telenor all the channels and contents it had developed, for less than two Euro, what, I think, the Commission must check to see if it is predatory pricing," he added.

According to him, "Telecom is right when it says that there are similar agreements in many European countries. But the regulators have to rent the infrastructure under the same rules for everyone… Telekom and Telenor have about 80 percent of the mobile communications market, and the United Group is not in that business. Suppose Telekom and Telenor work together to allow Telenor to provide new services. It means a competitor appears in the market with four services. In that case, it must be possible for other competitors, such as UG and Vip, to be able to offer a range of all services as well."

That meant, Djelic said, that the United Group should also have access to Telekom's infrastructure to provide mobile communication services if it wanted to.

"And, then, let's market decide who's better."